Chapter 2684 — Who Am I?

But at that moment, scene after scene was replaying in Yuning's mind like a film reel: "Wei Zhao" resolved into Zhao Qibing, the "waiter" resolved into Zhao Qibing's lackey—and "Yang Huaijun" turned out to be the real Wei Zhao!

The reason she had acted as she did was that she had been dosed with Zhao Qibing's aphrodisiac!

Now that she knew the truth, Yuning was consumed with shame and fury! The real Wei Zhao had been right before her eyes, and had even been about to let nature take its course and have something happen between them—yet she had been the one to refuse him! And all the while her heart had been fixed on a false Wei Zhao. Truly... Zhao Qibing, you bastard!

The clearer Yuning's head became, the deeper her regret grew. She wanted to tell Wei Zhao to stop purging the poison and go on with what he had been doing, but she had no strength left and could not utter a word.

Of course, even with strength, Yuning knew this was reality, and she could never bring herself to take that step. Much as she liked Wei Zhao, she also knew her own mission and future: before that plan was set in motion, she had to remain a virgin!

Though Yuning did not even know exactly which plan that was, the matriarch of the Hidden Yu family and Yu Xiaochen had warned her time and again never to act on impulse! Naturally, after so many warnings, Yuning would sometimes retort rebelliously, "So what if I just slept with Wei Zhao and got it over with?"

That was also why the Hidden Yu family guarded against Wei Zhao as though against a thief. "Guard against fire, guard against theft, guard against Wei Zhao" had become the family's motto and security slogan over the years, leaving Yuning in a state of semi-house arrest.

In truth, Yuning sometimes regretted it too. If not for that reckless outburst of adolescent rebellion back then, the Hidden Yu family would never have kept her under such watch, guarding against Wei Zhao like a thief—nor would they have tried to kill Wei Zhao at every opportunity...

No one knew that the real reason the matriarch of the Hidden Yu family was so bent on killing Wei Zhao was that one sentence Yuning had spoken all those years ago... And even though Yuning had explained afterward, the matriarch no longer believed her, and remained ever wary of Wei Zhao, forever afraid he would ruin her grand design!

Once Wei Zhao had drawn every last trace of poison from Yuning's body, he removed the silver needles from her. But Yuning was drenched in sweat; the poison that had been drawn out clung to her all over, giving off a rank, foul stench.

After putting the silver needles away, Wei Zhao rose to his feet and turned to walk out of the room...

Seeing Wei Zhao about to leave, Yuning wanted to call him back, but her body was so weak that she could not utter a single word. Watching his figure vanish through the doorway, she was overcome with disappointment.

In fact, Wei Zhao was not leaving. He had gone to fetch a dry towel. Walking to the wardrobe in the outer room, he opened it, took out a dry towel, and then turned and walked back into the inner room.

When Yuning saw Wei Zhao return, she was overjoyed. He came over, lifted her clothing, and began wiping down her body. He had already touched everything that was meant to be touched a moment ago, so he no longer minded; he had resolved to face this love from his past head-on, and would hold nothing back.

As Wei Zhao wiped her body, Yuning felt both bashful and warm at heart. She closed her eyes and quietly savored the tenderness of that moment.

Wei Zhao, of course, had no idea that Yuning had regained her senses; he still assumed she was lost in illusion, and so said nothing to her.

After all, Wei Zhao did not know how long the Medicine King's draught would last. He had merely purged most of it from Yuning's body; a small residue surely remained, and he had left that alone. In time it would be converted into urine and expelled, with little effect on the body, so there was no need to flush it out in haste.

This was not like a poison. Had it been poison, Wei Zhao would have had no choice but to do as he had when the eldest young miss was poisoned, forcing Yuning to convert the toxin into urine and expel it.

When he had finished wiping her down, Wei Zhao rose to his feet once more. Yuning thought he was truly leaving this time and wanted to speak up to stop him, but her weak body still would not let her make a sound.

In fact, Wei Zhao was not leaving. He went to the washroom, rinsed the towel clean with water, and then came back, intending to wipe Yuning's body down once more with the damp towel.

Seeing Wei Zhao return again, Yuning's heart leapt with joy once more. This time, however, her strength had recovered somewhat, and so the delight on her face gave away the fact that she was fully lucid.

"You're awake?" Wei Zhao's steps faltered; he was somewhat embarrassed, towel in hand, unsure whether he should go on wiping her down. He did not know whether Yuning would remember any of this once the drug wore off—and even if she did, she had taken him for Yang Huaijun, which left him thoroughly mortified.

"Mm..." Yuning was embarrassed too. Since Wei Zhao had seen through her, she could hardly keep pretending to be muddled. But at the thought that she had just mistaken Wei Zhao for Yang Huaijun and rejected him, Yuning wanted to tear her hair out. Even if nothing happened between them, a kiss or a hug would have done—but now...

"Ha, well, it's good that you're awake..." Yet Wei Zhao was rather surprised: why was Yuning not the least bit startled to see him? By rights, she ought to be astonished. Could she still think he was Yang Huaijun? The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed, so he pointed at his own nose and asked, "Who am I?"

At his question, Yuning's little face flushed crimson. But answer she must, so she squirmed and said haltingly, "Wei Zhao... I'm sorry. Earlier I... I didn't know it was you..."

"Uh... so you figured it out afterward?" Wei Zhao was slightly taken aback by her answer, but pressed on: "You sobered up later? You've been awake all along?"

"Mm... earlier, I didn't have the strength to speak... I'm sorry..." Yuning felt terribly apologetic. She imagined Wei Zhao must be deeply hurt—he had finally taken the initiative for once, only to be coldly refused. "I truly didn't do it on purpose. I took Zhao Qibing's drug, and I imagined he was you; then when you came in, I took you for Brother Yang Huaijun..."

"Uh... I'd guessed as much..." Wei Zhao nodded to show he understood.